2 senators may enter '08 picture

McCain, Republican of Arizona, said he is moving toward a 2008 bid by "doing things organizationally and legally" but will not make a final decision until early next year.

McCain, considered a top contender for his party's presidential nomination, said he could create an exploratory committee as early as this week. "There are certain things legally you have to comply with in order to continue to raise money and set up an organization."

"The important thing is we will not make a decision until I sit down with my family, but we will be prepared," he said.

McCain characterized the moves as preliminary until he decides over the holidays about a possible bid. He unsuccessfully sought his party's nomination for president in 2000.

McCain is considered the one to beat in a crowded Republican field. Other possible candidates include Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney, Senate majority leader Bill Frist of Tennessee, Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, Senator Sam Brownback of Kansas, and former New York City mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.

If McCain were to run, he would turn 72 on Aug. 29, 2008, at the height of the campaign. Only Ronald Reagan was older -- 73 at the start of his second term.

McCain is a former Navy pilot who was a prisoner of war in Vietnam. He was elected to the Senate in 1986, and served in the House for four years before that. During the 2006 election cycle, McCain raised more than $10.5 million on behalf of Republican candidates. He also donated nearly $1.5 million to federal, state, and county parties.

Biden, 63, who is in line to take over as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, also has run for president before, dropping from the 1988 race after it became known he had lifted a portion of a speech from a British politician without attribution.

Biden, first elected to the Senate in 1972, said yesterday that he would address the issue of an exploratory committee early in 2007. "I still plan on running. I haven't, quite frankly, thought through all of the . . . mechanics of it at this point," he said.

Last week, Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack announced his candidacy for the Democratic nomination. Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York is widely considered a top contender .

Other Democrats mentioned include Senator John F. Kerry of Massachusetts, the 2004 nominee; former senator John Edwards of North Carolina, the vice presidential nominee two years ago; Senators Barack Obama of Illinois, Evan Bayh of Indiana, and Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut; and New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson.